The present invention relates to a color picture image recording apparatus for recording a color picture image of a color original on a recording medium.
A photosensitive and pressure-sensitive recording medium is generally used in the recording apparatus, which generally can be classified into two types, one being of a self-contained type and the other being of a transfer type. In the self-contained type recording medium, and encapsulated chromogenic material or dye precursor and a developer material are co-deposited on one surface of a single substrate as one layer or as two contiguous layers. In contrast the transfer type recording medium employs a developer material which is coated on a separate substrate as a separate developer or copy sheet. The self-contained type recording medium is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,440,846 and the transfer type recording medium is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,399,209.
Two types of prior art color picure image recording apparatus to which the present invention generally relates will be described.
The first prior art apparatus using the transfer type recording medium is shown in FIG. 1. A color original 1 to be reproduced moves in the leftward direction and is scanned by light radiated from a halogen lamp 2. The light reflected on the original is focused by a focusing lens 3 and exposed on a sheet 4 on which the encapsulated chromogenic material is coated (hereinafter referred to as a microcapsule sheet). As shown in FIG. 2, the microcapsule sheet 4 is made up of a transparent base member 4a made of resin and pressure rupturable microcapsules 4b coated on one surface of the base member 4a, each of the microcapsules 4b separately containing photo-curable resin and one of primary color chromogenic materials or dye precursors (or color formers), i.e. colors of cyan, magenta and yellow. The microcapsule sheet 4 and a separate sheet 7 on which the developer material is coated (hereinafter referred to as a developer sheet) constitute a recording medium.
A microcapsule sheet accommodating unit 6 is provided, in which an elongated web-like continuous microcapsule sheet 4 is wound around a supply shaft 5. The microcapsule sheet 4 is fed out from the accommodating unit 6 when used, and is wound around a take-up shaft 8 after being subjected to exposure. The exposed microcapsule sheet entirely wound therearound can be taken out from the recording apparatus.
A pressure-developing unit 9 performs pressure-development of the exposed microcapsule sheet 4 which carries thereon a latent image corresponding to the original and forms a visible image on a developer sheet 7. In a developer sheet cassette 9a, cut developer sheets are stacked which are urged upwardly by an urging means (not shown) secured to the bottom of the cassette 9a. The urging means is made up of a plate and a spring having one end fixed to the bottom of the cassette 9a and another end secured to the plate. A semi-circular roller 10 is rotatably provided above the cassette 9a, which feeds uppermost developer sheets 7 one by one in accordance with every rotation of the roller 10. A separation piece (not shown) is provided in the exit of the cassette 9a which serves to separate the sheets one from the other. A copy sheet is discharged to a sheet tray (not shown) after the developer sheet 7 is subjected to the pressure development.
While this apparatus is advantageous in that a developer sheet 7 can be smoothly supplied, since the developer sheet cassette 9a is disposed above the pressure-developing unit 9, it is inconvenient in that the developer sheet 7 is discharged while putting the visible image carrying surface face-down. Therefore, the operator has to reverse the developer sheet on which the visible image is formed (hereinafter referred to as a copy sheet) whenever he needs to see the copy sheet. This apparatus is further disadvantageous in that the surface of the developer sheet on which the developer material is coated is liable to be scratched or damaged when the semi-circular roller 10 is frictionally in contact therewith. As a result, a dropout of the image may occur.
Shown in FIG. 3 is another type of a prior art color picture image recording apparatus described in a copending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 050,313 filed on May 14, 1987 by Sangyouji et al and assigned to the same assignee, or the corresponding U.K. Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. 2190759A. The apparatus shown in FIG. 3 uses the self-contained type photosensitive and pressure-sensitive recording sheet P.
In FIG. 3, the light radiated from a light source 12 is reflected on a color original 11 and the reflection light is directed to a photosensitive drum 16 through a first reflection mirror 13, an optical lens 14, and a second reflection mirror 15. The photosensitive drum 16 is rotatable in the direction indicated by an arrow in FIG. 3. A visible radiation spectro-filter 17 is disposed in an optical system located between an optical lens 14 and the reflection mirror 15. The spectro-filter 17 is constituted with a red filter 18 for transmitting only red light, a green filter 19 for transmitting only green light, and a blue filter 20 for transmitting only blue light. Those filters 18, 19 and 20 are provided so as to radially extend around a rotary shaft 22.
A latent image corresponding to a picture image of the original is formed on the photosensitive drum 16 and the latent image is developed by the toner powders in a developing unit 23. The developed image is transferred on a light transmissive member 24. The light transmissive member 24 on which the toner image is transferred serves as a mask member 24'. The mask member 24' is transported and then overlaid the self-contained type recording medium P. An ultraviolet source 29 is disposed above the recording medium P, and an ultraviolet-light spectro-filter 30 is disposed between the source 29 and the mask member 24'.
In the above-described apparatus, when the mask member 24' and the recording medium P are transported beneath the light source 29 while placing the former on the top of the latter, the confronting surfaces are liable to be scratched due to the surface contacts of these two members, thereby making the picture image on the recording medium blur. In order to prevent the surfaces of the mask member 24' and the recording medium P from being scratched, it is required that these two members be arranged with a spacing therebetween as shown in FIG. 4.
However, when the light is irradiated onto the mask member 24' in the condition shown in FIG. 4, the light reaching the surface of the recording medium P is diffused, and therefore the picture image is adversely made unclear.